*~*~*~* Official AMCAS "Work/Activities" Tips Thread 2020-2021 *~*~*~*

[usrmebe]

@Catalystik Do you have any advice for listing total hours for "on-call" work/volunteer activities, where it would be too difficult to separate the hours of the shift that were "active" versus still being officially on-call?

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[Catalystik]

Hello all, I have a question about clinical experiences that I want to hear your thoughts on. Sorry if this topic has been raised before.

I have been working as a skate patrol for 10 years now. For those who are unfamiliar, as a skate patrol, I maintain the safety of patrons who skate in the arena during public skate sessions; responding to emergencies, performing first-aid when needed (i.e. broken bones, dislocations, cuts, bleeds etc) and calling EMS when needed, responding to non-medical concerns from patrons etc. Currently, I have my skate patrol experience noted as clinical experience, as while I'm not in a hospital, I'm still delivering medical assistance to patrons (and thus, as LizzyM call it, I'm close enough to smell them ).

I have clinical experience where I am a volunteer in hospital, but as a non-traditional applicant, that experience was fairly long ago. I don't want to sell myself short. But at the same time, I don't want to give the Admissions Committee the impression that I'm lying on my application.

Thank you in advance for your opinions and feedback!

For what percent of your paid hours do you care for the injured?

 

[Catalystik]

@Catalystik Do you have any advice for listing total hours for "on-call" work/volunteer activities, where it would be too difficult to separate the hours of the shift that were "active" versus still being officially on-call?

My Suggestions:
If the activity is paid, you can list all your hours of employment in the header, but then estimate the percent time you were actively involved in the activity and state that in the narrative.

If it is volunteer, figure the likely hours of active involvement (your good-faith, best estimate is fine) and list that number in the Total Hours space. In the narrative you can include as part of the description the hours per week or month you were on call, stating that "those hours are in addition to the above."

 

[usrmebe]

My Suggestions:
If the activity is paid, you can list all your hours of employment in the header, but then estimate the percent time you were actively involved in the activity and state that in the narrative.

If it is volunteer, figure the likely hours of active involvement (your good-faith, best estimate is fine) and list that number in the Total Hours space. In the narrative you can include as part of the description the hours per week or month you were on call, stating that "those hours are in addition to the above."

What if the activity is pay-per-call? I.e. I am on-call 24 hours at my station but only get paid for the calls going out during that time; however, I often do other activities (paperwork, clean, etc.) during the other hours in which I don't get paid. Could I list the overall on-call hours in the Total and then specify in the narrative how many were actually paid along with other duties?

 

[Savannah123]

A formal citation isn't necessary. You can shorten it as you see fit. You might just say Fifth-author or Co-author: [rest of the citation]. Or [FirstAuthor], . . . Savannah123 (fifth author) [rest of the citation]. Or you could include in the name of the space Co-Authored Accepted Manuscripts and not include names for any of the citations in the space. Or whatever. As long as there's enough information for an interested adcomm to find the article, you're fine.

Will it suffice to simply write "I co-authored peer-reviewed publications (published by Journal X and Journal Y)" without mentioning any author names?

Regarding my patient experiences, I know it's a huge no-no to mention bad experiences with doctors, but is it the same with mentioning difficult experiences with patients and how I want to be part of fixing this problem?

 

[Catalystik]

What if the activity is pay-per-call? I.e. I am on-call 24 hours at my station but only get paid for the calls going out during that time; however, I often do other activities (paperwork, clean, etc.) during the other hours in which I don't get paid. Could I list the overall on-call hours in the Total and then specify in the narrative how many were actually paid along with other duties?

Keep in mind that your Contact would probably be able to attest to your paid hours only. So I suggest that you list the paid hours in the Total Hours space (explaining that those are active hours only, when you go out on a call), then in the narrative further explain the rest of the breakdown (other duties vs sleep vs personal care, shopping, etc) with a good faith estimate of the the other productive time that benefits your workplace in the narrative, with the comment that "these hours are in addition to the above." Try to be as transparent as possible in describing your duties.

 

[HouseJC]

For what percent of your paid hours do you care for the injured?

Hello @Catalystik , I'd say about 50% of my paid hours are caring for the injured. Would you advise that I indicate the % hours where I spend caring for the injured, but keep it as clinical experience?
Thanks in advance!

 

[Catalystik]

I'd say about 50% of my paid hours are caring for the injured. Would you advise that I indicate the % hours where I spend caring for the injured, but keep it as clinical experience?

Wow, you get a lot of injuries! If that much of your paid hours are spent applying first aid for injuries, then you can legitimately call it Clinical. Be sure to include the 50% figure in the narrative description, along with other aspects of your role.

Be aware that this designation might raise some eyebrows (since they are patrons and not patients), but I agree with you that you have little choice considering your other clinical experience was awhile ago.

 

[Catalystik]

Would contact tracing count as clinical experience? I know that there is no 'smelling' of patients through the phone, but 90% of the work I do does entail communication with COVID+ patients, and their close contacts. There's HIPAA training, but I don't have much to base off and I suppose there isn't much precedent for contact tracing experience and pre-meds. I am gonna include it in my application regardless, but I'm stuck on what to list it as. I am lacking clinical hours (besides shadowing) largely due to COVID so I might be reaching hard to try and fill that gap.

You are right that there is no precedent for what might be considered "clinical" during a pandemic, when keeping students safe is a high priority. I feel/hope that adcomms will be more relaxed in their expectations. Adcomms who previously looked on crisis hotlines and distance scribing as clinical will certainly consider this to be clinical enough, too.

As it happens you don't have much choice, having waited until the last few months to gain active clinical experience, so call it Clinical. But please, for the sake of your application this year through Secondaries, Update Letters, and interview conversations, and in case you end up reapplying, as soon as things open up in your state, start getting some in-person active patient interaction.

 

[Catalystik]

Thank you. I know I have to get meaningful in-person clinical experience, and I have been kicking myself for not having done much of substance prior. I was scheduled to start volunteering at a hospice center in my area the week that LTC facilities were closed off due to COVID, and I have that more or less 'on hold' for once things open back up. I had initially planned to do this throughout my gap year, and had figured that the March to May window would have given me enough experience to describe it, while being able to project my hours through August 2021, but alas.

Have you considered taking another gap year and delaying your application until Summer 2021?

 

[HouseJC]

Wow, you get a lot of injuries! If that much of your paid hours are spent applying first aid for injuries, then you can legitimately call it Clinical. Be sure to include the 50% figure in the narrative description, along with other aspects of your role.

Be aware that this designation might raise some eyebrows (since they are patrons and not patients), but I agree with you that you have little choice considering your other clinical experience was awhile ago.

Thanks a lot for your feedback @Catalystik ! Yeah, we get a fair amount of injuries, but its also a fantastic learning opportunity for me as a pre-med. I also mentioned this as one of my 3 most meaningful experiences to exemplify it.

 

[jt280]

Hi,

Is it appropriate to include about wanting to travel to a 3rd world country (every few years) to provide basic medical care to those poor communities (once a physician)? It would be backed up by my experience of shadowing a physician in this country on and off for many years and that this physician would be my contact to carry out my desire to provide the care.

I'm debating if its appropriate because adcoms might just think to themselves that I should instead get educated in that country itself..?

 

[HouseJC]

Hi,

Is it appropriate to include about wanting to travel to a 3rd world country (every few years) to provide basic medical care to those poor communities (once a physician)? It would be backed up by my experience of shadowing a physician in this country on and off for many years and that this physician would be my contact to carry out my desire to provide the care.

I'm debating if its appropriate because adcoms might just think to themselves that I should instead get educated in that country itself..?

Might be in the wrong section if you include in Work and Activities descriptions. If you are citing this experience as a most meaningful experience, perhaps add it in there. But, I would definitely add it into your personal statement (assuming you are talking about this in there).

 

[Catalystik]

Thanks a lot for your feedback @Catalystik ! Yeah, we get a fair amount of injuries, but its also a fantastic learning opportunity for me as a pre-med. I also mentioned this as one of my 3 most meaningful experiences to exemplify it.

Then you'll have plenty of space to tell a tale. Do you have any certifications related to these duties?

 

[Catalystik]

Is it appropriate to include about wanting to travel to a 3rd world country (every few years) to provide basic medical care to those poor communities (once a physician)? It would be backed up by my experience of shadowing a physician in this country on and off for many years and that this physician would be my contact to carry out my desire to provide the care.

I'm debating if its appropriate because adcoms might just think to themselves that I should instead get educated in that country itself..?

How long would you stay in that country for each visit? If it would be a prolonged period, how would you pay off your student loans with no income for that period?

 

[Catalystik]

I have not really considered doing a second gap year because I have just finished my MPH, and a second gap year would put me four years removed from undergrad (shoddy reasoning at best). I know that one year is ultimately negligible in say, 20 years from now, but I have a handful of extenuating factors around family/personal life that make me feel like I would rather apply for 2021 rather than 2022. But I am interested to know if you think applying for 2021 is not in my best interest.

There are modifying social factors that will get you more leniency this upcoming season, but of a nature never before experienced by any of us. If this were not the case, I would encourage you to get all your ducks in a row before applying. But as things are, I cannot be discouraging. (Or wildly encouraging, either, for that matter.)

 

[jt280]

How long would you stay in that country for each visit? If it would be a prolonged period, how would you pay off your student loans with no income for that period?

Would this be something I would have to explain in this section? I would like to go periodically every few years for 1-2 months.
Maybe I will save it for secondaries?

 

[jt280]

Might be in the wrong section if you include in Work and Activities descriptions. If you are citing this experience as a most meaningful experience, perhaps add it in there. But, I would definitely add it into your personal statement (assuming you are talking about this in there).

Gotcha, but do you think it would be appropriate or inappropriate to include at all? Because adcoms may think if I am interested in spending some time in another country, then I should just go to that country and study medicine?

 

[Catalystik]

Would this be something I would have to explain in this section? I would like to go periodically every few years for 1-2 months.
Maybe I will save it for secondaries?

My point is that you really need to think through this plan in detail and have answers in case it comes up at interviews. If you haven't done that, it might be better not to mention it at all.

That said, I know docs who have made this plan work for them, so it's not an impossibility.

 

[jt280]

My point is that you really need to think through this plan in detail and have answers in case it comes up at interviews. If you haven't done that, it might be better not to mention it at all.

That said, I know docs who have made this plan work for them, so it's not an impossibility.

Ahh, I see. I have definitely not thought about this plan in detail. Thank you.

 

[GroundDigger]

Hi.
So I have tried looking for a clear answer for my question but am still quite confused on what to do.

Basically, I did a research oral presentation at a conference with a friend. The presentation was at a different school. We submitted an abstract, got it approved, and presented it. Before presenting it, we spent an entire semester working on the research for about 50 hours.

So on the application:
1) Would this be under the "Presentation/Posters"?
2) What do I put for the hours, 51 (50 hours of research + 1 hour presentation)?
3) And would it be ok in the description to talk about the process of our research?

 

[Catalystik]

Basically, I did a research oral presentation at a conference with a friend. The presentation was at a different school. We submitted an abstract, got it approved, and presented it. Before presenting it, we spent an entire semester working on the research for about 50 hours.

So on the application:
1) Would this be under the "Presentation/Posters"?
2) What do I put for the hours, 51 (50 hours of research + 1 hour presentation)?
3) And would it be ok in the description to talk about the process of our research?

I need more information:

Was this original, hypothesis-driven research that used the scientific method or more of a literature review and report of the work of others?
1) Did it take place at a regional or national conference? Or was the venue a nearby campus Research Day Symposium, perhaps at your friend's campus. Was the project part of a class requirement?

2) Usually a Posters/Presentation Total Hours would list just the hours of the presentation or standing next to the poster explaining it, so, 1 hour.

3) If this is original research, you should have a Research space dedicated to discussing the project, the process, and your role. That is where you'd enter the 50 hours. If it was more of a project, you'd use an Extracurricular or Other tag for the same purpose.

 

[mdpls!]

If some of my activities are about a position I had (ie. president), should the dates I provide be for just my tenure as that position, or should they cover my involvement with the organization from the beginning? For example, if I was in a club in college for all 4 years, but was only president for senior year, should I date the activity entitled "President of Club X" for just the year or for all 4 years?

 

[Catalystik]

If some of my activities are about a position I had (ie. president), should the dates I provide be for just my tenure as that position, or should they cover my involvement with the organization from the beginning? For example, if I was in a club in college for all 4 years, but was only president for senior year, should I date the activity entitled "President of Club X" for just the year or for all 4 years?

You have a choice, depending on how many spaces remain at your disposal, how much you have to say, and how important having a dedicated Leadership-Not Listed Elsewhere space would be to your application.

A Leadership space should include only the date range and total hours for the leadership position. So an activity entitled "President of Club X" would be suitable for such a space. You can refer to the preceding general membership in the narrative, though.

An Extracurricular space can include the full date range and all the hours of your club membership plus the leadership in one space (adding the Prez position to the title of the space helps it stand out). So maybe using a title like "General Member & President of Club X." You would mention the dates and role of Presidency in the narrative.

If you have enough hours and feel the routine club activities enhance your candidacy, you can split the leadership and the general membership into two spaces, each with their own dates and total hours.

 

[Premedstudent149]

Hi, I have a few questions on how to list my research experience. I conducted clinical research on surgical procedures performed at an outpatient clinic, and I presented five unique posters about my research. Two of the posters where presented at my school's research symposium, two were presented at a national conference I attended, and the last one was presented at a separate national conference. I was planning on talking about my research in more general terms as a most meaningful activity entry. But I am confused on how to separate each of these posters into separate entries, given that some were presented at the same conference. I would greatly appreciate feedback on this.

 

[Catalystik]

Hi, I have a few questions on how to list my research experience. I conducted clinical research on surgical procedures performed at an outpatient clinic, and I presented five unique posters about my research. Two of the posters where presented at my school's research symposium, two were presented at a national conference I attended, and the last one was presented at a separate national conference. I was planning on talking about my research in more general terms as a most meaningful activity entry. But I am confused on how to separate each of these posters into separate entries, given that some were presented at the same conference. I would greatly appreciate feedback on this.

I suggest the two Research Symposium posters be mentioned with the affiliated Research entry, and that you group the other three posters' citations in their own Presentations/Posters space.

 

[GroundDigger]

I need more information:

Was this original, hypothesis-driven research that used the scientific method or more of a literature review and report of the work of others?
1) Did it take place at a regional or national conference? Or was the venue a nearby campus Research Day Symposium, perhaps at your friend's campus. Was the project part of a class requirement?

2) Usually a Posters/Presentation Total Hours would list just the hours of the presentation or standing next to the poster explaining it, so, 1 hour.

3) If this is original research, you should have a Research space dedicated to discussing the project, the process, and your role. That is where you'd enter the 50 hours. If it was more of a project, you'd use an Extracurricular or Other tag for the same purpose.

It was a regional conference for all colleges from Southern California. My partner and I have no association with the college campus the conference took place at. It was not part of a class requirement. I did it purely for the sake of doing a presentation at a conference.

This was before I was interested in medicine, so the research we did was within the Psychology category. We came up with the research idea and abstract. Does it still count as original research if the actual research wasn't done in a lab. For example, most of our data came from setting up survey stations across our city.

So if I do end up using a "Research" space for this to talk about the project and what we did. Would I also need to create a separate one as "Poster/Presentation" for the actual day of the presentation? What would go in the description for this if I have already explained the research in the "Research" space.

Highly appreciate your help. Thanks!!

 

[Catalystik]

1) It was a regional conference for all colleges from Southern California. My partner and I have no association with the college campus the conference took place at. It was not part of a class requirement. I did it purely for the sake of doing a presentation at a conference.

2) This was before I was interested in medicine, so the research we did was within the Psychology category. We came up with the research idea and abstract. Does it still count as original research if the actual research wasn't done in a lab. For example, most of our data came from setting up survey stations across our city.

3) So if I do end up using a "Research" space for this to talk about the project and what we did. Would I also need to create a separate one as "Poster/Presentation" for the actual day of the presentation? What would go in the description for this if I have already explained the research in the "Research" space.

1) Then you can enter it under a Posters/Presentations tag, as it likely underwent a competitive process to be selected by the abstract reviewers for inclusion at the conference.

2) It is original research if you had a hypothesis, methods, data collection & analysis, and a conclusion, regardless of whether it took place in a lab, or not.

3) Ideally, you would use two spaces. In the Posters/Presentations space you would just enter the citation for the abstract. If you simply do not have the space, then use a Research tag and cite the presentation at the end.

 

[MMClark]

For a re-application, how does it look if we change our most meaningful activities? The previous experiences that were "most meaningful" are still in the Work/activities section, but I've had a few new experiences that I might be able to express a stronger message with through a "most meaningful" designation. Thanks in advance!

 

[Catalystik]

For a re-application, how does it look if we change our most meaningful activities? The previous experiences that were "most meaningful" are still in the Work/activities section, but I've had a few new experiences that I might be able to express a stronger message with through a "most meaningful" designation. Thanks in advance!

It is perfectly fine for new, impactful experiences to supercede the old.

 

[Premedstudent149]

I suggest the two Research Symposium posters be mentioned with the affiliated Research entry, and that you group the other three posters' citations in their own Presentations/Posters space.

Thank you very much for your response. I still have a few clarification questions about this if you don't mind. When you say to group the 3 posters into their own poster space, do you mean create 1 work/activities entry where I input all three citations, or create 3 separate entries? Also, I was wondering if I should describe the research I conducted in more detail for these three posters in the descriptions, rather than just listing citations. I did not have the chance to do this in my original research entry, since I conducted a few different projects at this outpatient clinic, and the character limit forced me to write in broader terms.

I also have two more research related experiences I conducted at this outpatient clinic which I'm trying to categorize. I created a provisional patent for a medical device, which I mentioned briefly in my main research entry. I was wondering if I should also create a separate entry for this, and if so, what category to put it under. My second experience is writing up a case report for a unique procedure. I did not mention this at all in my research entry, since we are in the process of submitting it to journals. I believe someone asked a similar question previously, and you advised them to create a separate entry under the category of teaching or other. I was wondering if this holds true in my case?

I apologize for all the questions, but would greatly appreciate feedback on them.

 

[Catalystik]

Thank you very much for your response. I still have a few clarification questions about this if you don't mind.
1) When you say to group the 3 posters into their own poster space, do you mean create 1 work/activities entry where I input all three citations, or create 3 separate entries?
2) Also, I was wondering if I should describe the research I conducted in more detail for these three posters in the descriptions, rather than just listing citations. I did not have the chance to do this in my original research entry, since I conducted a few different projects at this outpatient clinic, and the character limit forced me to write in broader terms.

I also have two more research related experiences I conducted at this outpatient clinic which I'm trying to categorize. I created a provisional patent for a medical device, which I mentioned briefly in my main research entry.
3) I was wondering if I should also create a separate entry for this, and if so, what category to put it under.
4) My second experience is writing up a case report for a unique procedure. I did not mention this at all in my research entry, since we are in the process of submitting it to journals. I believe someone asked a similar question previously, and you advised them to create a separate entry under the category of teaching or other. I was wondering if this holds true in my case?

1) Sorry to be imprecise. I meant to have just one Posters/Presentations slot with all three posters cited in the same narrative space.

2) Yes, you could do that.

3) While a "patent pending" or a "patent" are worthy of their own space using Publications or Other, anything earlier in the pipeline, like a provisional patent, should be mentioned in an affiliated Employment or Research entry. You might potentially use your patent lawyer as the Contact.

4) Until it's accepted somewhere, I suggest leaving it off the application. If you feel compelled to include it anyway, it would be to report the experience of seeing an interesting case and preparing the case report after exploring the literature for similarities. Other or Teaching seem like good choices for a tag. Extracurricular or Artistic Endeavor (for writing) could work, too. The impact of the experience on adcomms would be far greater if you wait until a journal editor validates the article's merit by accepting it for publication. So consider saving it for Secondaries or update letters.

If you need more space to discuss this specific project, you could take it out from the current grouping and give it its own space.

 

[GroundDigger]

1) Then you can enter it under a Posters/Presentations tag, as it likely underwent a competitive process to be selected by the abstract reviewers for inclusion at the conference.

2) It is original research if you had a hypothesis, methods, data collection & analysis, and a conclusion, regardless of whether it took place in a lab, or not.

3) Ideally, you would use two spaces. In the Posters/Presentations space you would just enter the citation for the abstract. If you simply do not have the space, then use a Research tag and cite the presentation at the end.

I really appreciate your replies!

So correct me if I have misunderstood. Since all we wrote out was an abstract and not a full research paper, I can't consider it research, right?
To my understanding, our abstract was not published even though we were accepted by the conference.
If I do end up using one space as "poster/presentations", would it still be ok to include the total 51 hours?

 

[Hzreio]

It is safe to use "GPA" as an abbreviation in describing awards, right? Or is it preferred to spell out "Grade-Point Average".

 

[Catalystik]

So correct me if I have misunderstood. 1) Since all we wrote out was an abstract and not a full research paper, I can't consider it research, right?
To my understanding, our abstract was not published even though we were accepted by the conference.

2) If I do end up using one space as "poster/presentations", would it still be ok to include the total 51 hours?

1) You can't call the accepted abstract a publication, but the project that led to it could still be called "Research" if you followed the scientific method to get the data which you reported.

2) If you use one space for the research and the poster/ presentation, you can enter 51 total hours.

 

[Catalystik]

It is safe to use "GPA" as an abbreviation in describing awards, right? Or is it preferred to spell out "Grade-Point Average".

It's fine to use the abbreviation "GPA."

 

[HumanAfterAll]

i honestly have no idea how to calculate the hours for my black belt. is it ok if i just put 999 hours? i'm listing it as an award/recognition and had been practicing for 7 years up to the black belt

 

[BlazinBandit]

Question about how to fill out the activity section for AMCAS. I know there is no right or wrong way but I just wanted some opinions. I worked as a medical scribe in a primary care setting from 2015-17. I had some other jobs/experiences in between. Now I am a scribe in the ER from 2019-Present. Should I combine these activities or should I list them separately? It is one of my most meaningful activities. I was just thinking it would be redundant to list them separately since it's basically the same job except for different settings.

Since I'm assuming everyone knows what scribes do I was going to leave out what my job description was. I was thinking of combining them and for the description would be focusing on what I learned from both experiences from an emergent standpoint and primary care too.

 

[Catalystik]

i honestly have no idea how to calculate the hours for my black belt. is it ok if i just put 999 hours? i'm listing it as an award/recognition and had been practicing for 7 years up to the black belt

Yes.

 

[Catalystik]

Question about how to fill out the activity section for AMCAS. I know there is no right or wrong way but I just wanted some opinions.

1) I worked as a medical scribe in a primary care setting from 2015-17. I had some other jobs/experiences in between. Now I am a scribe in the ER from 2019-Present. Should I combine these activities or should I list them separately? It is one of my most meaningful activities. I was just thinking it would be redundant to list them separately since it's basically the same job except for different settings.

2) Since I'm assuming everyone knows what scribes do I was going to leave out what my job description was. I was thinking of combining them and for the description would be focusing on what I learned from both experiences from an emergent standpoint and primary care too.

1) Each position deserves its own space, and I would think that some of the take-home points might differ considering that one practice provided longitudinal care and the other emergent care. But if you are short on space and make your MM commentary cover both experiences, then grouping them is fine. Be sure to include the subdates and subtotaled hours in the narrative, along with a Contact for the second-listed job (the first being put into the header for the space).

2) Well, scribe jobs do vary in some important respects from place to place. If you are or were an in-person scribe, mention it. If you are allowed to interact with the patients, say that, too.

 

[username1000]

.

 

[aspiringphysician190]

I cannot fit all of my research experience in the 700 characters space. Can I continue explaining it in the MM space for around 250 characters and then go into why research is one of my MM activities? thanks!

 

[deleted1051525]

Hello! I am a non-trad career changer applying this cycle. This thread is such an amazing resource - thank you!

I have 2(+) questions (and I am sure I will have more later):


1) I completed 1700 service hours in AmeriCorps. It looks like applicants generally classify AmeriCorps as nonclinical volunteering. However, I was specifically in a program called the Community HealthCorps where I was based out of a community health center and primarily served as an application and enrollment counselor signing patients up for ACA health exchange plans, medicaid, and SNAP benefits (we also did community enrollment events that were outside of the health center, so I was worked with a mix of "patients" and "nonpatients"). Do you think this would be appropriate to list as clinical volunteering?

2a) I was an anthropology major in undergrad. During that time, I had several experiences conducting anthropological research (mostly qualitative/mixed methods, though one project involved some more quantitative stuff like GIS mapping).... is it appropriate to put these into a combined Research category? Or should I designate them under a different label, such as "Other"?

2b) If I did go with a combined UG research category for these experiences, would it be alright to include my senior honors thesis in anthropology? My research was largely qualitative, but it was IRB approved. I certainly don't want to misrepresent my experiences as research if they do not fall within the bounds of what is considered "Research/Lab" by normal AMCAS standards. However, I do want to highlight my background in social science research and don't want that to completely fall through the cracks.


I am grateful for any and all information!

 

[WAMCHELP123]

I had a quick question about volunteering under a club on campus. If the club that I was involved in had around 10 specific dates over 4 years that were dedicated to volunteering, would I have to list out all 10 dates in the repeated section, or can I just say that over those 4 years there were 10 days in which I spent volunteering, these days make up around 60 hours if that clarifys anything.

 

[Catalystik]

I served as a TA for an anatomy course while I was in undergrad and after a few quarters, I became a Lead TA where I help other TAs learn about the material we will be presenting and different teaching techniques. In this position, I still served as a TA for students, I just took on additional leadership roles. Can I list this under Leadership category and have my prior TA experience under the teaching category?

All of the TA component can go under Teaching and the distinct leadership role where you managed other TAs can go under Leadership. Each entry should have its unique dates and total hours without counting any hours twice.

 

[Catalystik]

I cannot fit all of my research experience in the 700 characters space. Can I continue explaining it in the MM space for around 250 characters and then go into why research is one of my MM activities? thanks!

Yes. Just take care that there is a paragraph break after the first 700 characters, or your narrative will be cut off. Check from the PRINT command on the Main Menu of the application that it looks like it should.

 

[Catalystik]

Hello! I am a non-trad career changer applying this cycle.
1) I completed 1700 service hours in AmeriCorps. It looks like applicants generally classify AmeriCorps as nonclinical volunteering. However, I was specifically in a program called the Community HealthCorps where I was based out of a community health center and primarily served as an application and enrollment counselor signing patients up for ACA health exchange plans, medicaid, and SNAP benefits (we also did community enrollment events that were outside of the health center, so I was worked with a mix of "patients" and "nonpatients"). Do you think this would be appropriate to list as clinical volunteering?

2a) I was an anthropology major in undergrad. During that time, I had several experiences conducting anthropological research (mostly qualitative/mixed methods, though one project involved some more quantitative stuff like GIS mapping).... is it appropriate to put these into a combined Research category? Or should I designate them under a different label, such as "Other"?

2b) If I did go with a combined UG research category for these experiences, would it be alright to include my senior honors thesis in anthropology? My research was largely qualitative, but it was IRB approved. I certainly don't want to misrepresent my experiences as research if they do not fall within the bounds of what is considered "Research/Lab" by normal AMCAS standards. However, I do want to highlight my background in social science research and don't want that to completely fall through the cracks.

Thank you for numbering your questions.

1) If more than 50% of your time was spent helping current patients, you can call it Clinical.

2a) If you used the scientific method, with hypothesis, methods, data gathering, analysis, and conclusion, then Yes, you can call it Research. Other is fine for any other projects that don't fall into that definition.

2b) Yes. (I assume you refer to including the IRB-approved project that led to the honors thesis.)

 

[Catalystik]

I had a quick question about volunteering under a club on campus. If the club that I was involved in had around 10 specific dates over 4 years that were dedicated to volunteering, would I have to list out all 10 dates in the repeated section, or can I just say that over those 4 years there were 10 days in which I spent volunteering, these days make up around 60 hours if that clarifys anything.

A summary is fine, but try to give an impression of the sorts of projects you gave your time to. (Besides, the Repeated feature only works four times per space.)

 

[cacahuetes757]

Is it necessary to provide contact information for every physician you shadowed? I did all my shadowing at one hospital, but only have emails for two of the seven physicians. If I observed a surgery, for instance, could I put the phone number for the hospital surgery department?

 

[Catalystik]

Is it necessary to provide contact information for every physician you shadowed? I did all my shadowing at one hospital, but only have emails for two of the seven physicians. If I observed a surgery, for instance, could I put the phone number for the hospital surgery department?

Who scheduled the shadowing opportunities for you? Who did you check in with when you arrived? For how many hours did you shadow the two physicians for whom you have contact information?